Sailing-Kiteboarder Hooft sets sights on Paralympic recognition

BENGALURU : Soaring 30 feet above the waves gives Dutch para kiteboarder Willem Hooft some of the freedom he lost five years ago in a motorcycle accident, as he now travels the world to grow the sport as a professional athlete.

Hooft was part of a Para Development Program (PDP) event exclusively for kiteboarding at Lake Garda, Italy, last weekend as the sport's governing body World Sailing looks to nurture a discipline showing plenty of promise.

But his journey from recreational kiteboarder to a man on a mission to inspire others and promote the sport globally has not always been plain sailing.

"I started building a board myself. When I started 'sit kiteboarding', there were only eight people in the world doing it," Hooft, who is paralysed from the waist down and needs a special board with a seat, told Reuters in a telephone interview.

"I contacted the others to see how they did it and what kind of boards they used and began training as much as I could. After two years, I was at a level where I could make a trip to South Africa, where the waves can be pretty big."

Hooft said returning to the water gave him the motivation to continue his passion and he earned a sponsorship from American company Slingshot.

He is now a professional kiteboarder for the Slingshot Kite team and a team rider for Wind Voyager.

"After having an accident like this, you realise life can end at any moment. So after I did the rehabilitation and learnt how to live independently again, I decided I wanted to learn to surf again," Hooft said.

"In the last three years, I've been kiteboarding as much as I can and pushing the limits. Now there are many people who have started, with 50-100 seated para kiteboarders around the world."

PERSONAL AMBITION

Hooft, who is